(Book Review)

This book can be briefly described with just one quote from it: “I guess I still have a hangover,” sighed Richard. – Because I almost caught the meaning.” But now let’s talk about this novel in more detail.

‘Newerwhere’ is a splendid story about a journey through a somewhat gloomy world, after reading which you will look with interest at homeless people (especially if you meet them somewhere near the subway), respect rats, and be afraid to step outside the line at the subway station.

This book is simply stunning! The wonderful way the world is drawn little by little with strokes, the way this world intersects with ours, the way the main character, Richard, reacts to it as a person should react in such circumstances…

The universe here is quite unusual: it is moderately gloomy, very mysterious, quite dirty, but has a chic charm. It’s strange to write about the sewer like this, but I would walk through it.

The descriptions of both our city and the neighboring city are very cinematic, which is not surprising, because the novel was written as a script for a TV series. The series was really released, but in the preface, the author complains that his creations were greatly cut during filming, so he wrote the book to still show his world as it should have been.

The characters here are also on par. Perhaps not all of them are voluminous, but each of them is insanely charismatic. In this regard, I liked Warmer and Croup the most, a couple of bounty hunters, and especially Mr. Warmer. Although this couple seems a bit one-dimensional to me. However… Well, how could I not like a villain who collects 15th century ceramics and can cause serious bodily harm, while calmly explaining the term “periphrasis” to his victim?

And why are they one-dimensional? Well, these are hired killers who are chasing the main character. They don’t need it, the client needs it. They are dangerous and strong. One of them is an intellectual. Well, that’s all we know about them. How did they meet? Why did they become hired killers? Do they like it? Now it is. But did they like it from the beginning of such activity? The book does not answer all these questions. But do we need answers at all? The thugs are fun to watch, they definitely have enough dark charisma to make the reader fear but also love them… But wouldn’t they be less scary if we got to know more about them? I do not know.

Separately, I would like to talk about the last chapter of the book. It would seem that the story ended as adventure novels always end: Richard, the main character, achieved his goal from the beginning of the work and, after dangerous adventures, returned to the heavenly ordinary world. It seemed that it was the end, I would even say a happy ending… But after that we have another chapter… And the further we dive into it, the more we understand that the end is not happy at all. Richard finally gets into the world he loved so much, longed for, and in which he lived until recently, but he cannot get used to it, because he understands that it is no longer his world.

In fact, this chapter is so well written that it could even work as a stand-alone piece. In fact, I would watch its adaptation. Perhaps it would be perceived as a mixture of the first seasons of “Black Mirror” and “Joker,” and I am almost sure that this film would have won several awards at world festivals.

But with the last chapter, “Newerwhere” did not let me go. There was another luxurious text in my edition. In general, it was supposed to be a prologue to the novel “Newerwhere,” but the editor asked Neil Gaiman to cut it. The author decided to compromise and inserted this prologue after the novel, warning about it in the preface. I will say right away, I understood why the editor asked to remove this fragment from the beginning of the work. Dynamic points are very important, especially at the beginning of the work, when the reader needs to immerse himself in the story as quickly as possible, so that he, God forbid that you do not stop reading this book. One scene, unlike other scenes at the beginning of “Newerwhere,” is not dynamic at all. However, this scene with thugs Varner and Krupp was probably my favorite, and they’re also my favorite supporting characters, so I had a lot to choose from.

There’s almost no action in this scene, but it’s very personal for both characters and shows us a lot about their relationship. This scene is very calm and cozy, which you don’t expect from a scene with these characters. Of course, there is fire and the screams of most likely innocent victims who are burning alive in it, but it is somewhere very far away, not even on the second, but on the third or even the fourth plane. In the foreground, we see two companions who are calmly talking after a job well done.

Yes, this scene doesn’t answer the questions I’ve already asked about Varner and Krupp, but it does demonstrate once again how these people (let’s call them people, although I really doubt it and we’re not clearly shown who they are: people or perhaps some fantastic creatures.) are close. In fact, their closeness and affection for each other has been hinted at in other scenes, but not as directly as it is here. This scene definitely added volume to the characters in my eyes.

So let’s summarize. Should you read ‘Newerwhere’? Obviously yes! Should you read it right now? Yes, but I would still advise you to wait until the weather deteriorates a little and rainy and foggy November begins. Then your immersion will be more complete. So make some tea, hide under a blanket and enjoy this damp foggy story!

My rating is 100/10.